Yes, Sergio will be a Special Guest (as usual) at the Comic-Con International in San Diego, July 18-21. He’ll have his usual table in the hall where you can drop by, meet him, buy a sketch or just stare at his mustache. He will be appearing on the Sergio & Mark Show Panel (with Mark Evanier, Stan Sakai and Tom Luth) on Thursday, July 18 at 2:30 PM in Room 8. On Saturday of the con, he’ll be appearing at 10 AM on the Joe Kubert Tribute Panel in Room 4 and then at 11:45 AM, it’s the annual Quick Draw! competition in Room 6BCF where Sergio will be going a mano a mano, drawing against cartoonist Scott Shaw! and famous comic book artist Neal Adams! Be there!

After having to cancel several recent convention appearances while he recuperated from back problems, Sergio will be at the Comic-Con International in San Diego, probably for the entire time. It starts with Preview Night, Wednesday, July 11 and runs until Sunday, July 15. Sergio will be at his table, which is as usual I-7, and he will be selling Sergio books and Sergio art and Sergio smiles.

When he isn’t there, he will be appearing on a number of panels…

Thursday, July 12 – 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM – The Sergio and Mark Show
An annual Comic-Con tradition! The folks who give you Groo the Wanderer on occasion will tell what’s up with Groo and their other projects and will entertain you with glorious anecdotes and silly stories. Those folks are celebrated cartoonist Sergio Aragonés, his co-conspirator Mark Evanier, Usagi Yojimbo creator Stan Sakai, and the hardest-working man in comics, Tom Luth. Room 8

Saturday, July 14 – 11:45 AM – 1:00 PM – Quick Draw!
It’s the annual battle-to-the-death with Sharpies at 20 paces. Three of the fastest cartoonists in the world duel with wit and markers, drawing like crazy to create cartoons based on your suggestions and the evil schemes of the Quick Draw! Quizmaster, Mark Evanier! Competing as usual are Sergio Aragonés (MAD magazine, Groo the Wanderer) and Scott Shaw! (The Simpsons), and they’re joined by guest competitor Keith Knight (The K Chronicles), and maybe a few surprises! This is one of the most popular events at Comic-Con, so get there early. Room 6BCF

But not in person. Sergio is recovering from his recent back problems. He’s back at the drawing table working away, trying to catch up on his schedules. As a result, he had to cancel his announced appearance at the WonderCon in Anaheim on March 16-18…but he was there in spirit and by phone. The Quick Draw! game, usually played with Sergio, Scott Shaw! and a guest artist (under the moderation of Mark Evanier) was handled by Scott, Floyd Norman and Mike Kazaleh. And near the end, Mark phoned Sergio at his home, put the phone up to the microphone so everyone could hear him and Sergio gave a challenge to the cartoonists. He should be caught-up enough to join his fellow Quick-Drawers at the Comic-Con in San Diego this July.

As some of you may have heard over on Mark Evanier’s weblog, Sergio has been experiencing back problems. For just about the first time in his life, he has had to take time out from drawing.

He still has work upcoming in MAD and will try to get back to the drawing table in time to not break his streak there. Sergio has not missed being in an issue since #111, which was dated June of 1967. His comic Sergio Aragonés Funnies will probably have to suspend publication for a brief time. And the Groo Vs. Conan mini-series will also experience a delay. #1 will come out on schedule in April but then there will be a gap before the remaining three issues appear. We’ll alert you on this site (and Mark will alert you on his) when it’s known just how long that gap will be.

Sergio also regrets that he’ll be canceling all convention appearances for the next few months. That means he will not be at WonderCon in March or the Boston Comic Con in April. He’s still hoping to be at the Big Wow! ComicFest in San Jose in May. Stay tuned for more details.

Well, obviously we haven’t kept to our New Year’s Resolution about updating this page more often. But this is such an important announcement that we had to get off our duffs…

The Ojai Valley Museum located at 130 W. Ojai Avenue in Ojai, California announced today that it will be mounting “Mad About Sergio,” a first ever retrospective exhibit of the work of world famous Mad Magazine cartoonist Sergio Aragonés, an Ojai resident.

The exhibit, scheduled from August 7 – October 4, 2009, will feature original work by the artist as well as inform the viewer about the process of cartooning. Also featured will be wood carvings and other artwork that Sergio produces while he is thinking about his next cartoon concept. An opening reception will be held on August 22 from 5-7 p.m.

As an internationally known cartoonist for over 50 years, Sergio is known as the fastest cartoonist in the world. He is certainly the most honored, having won every major award in the field, including the National Cartoonists Society’s Reuben Award and the Will Eisner Hall of Fame Award. He has published over twenty books, created several comic book series and has animated numerous television programs.

He will be speaking and demonstrating his amazing talent at museum Sunday Gatherings during the exhibit. The first Sunday Gathering will be on August 30 when the subject will be “Cartooning with Sergio.” On the closing date of the exhibit, October 4, the Sunday Gathering subject will be “Sergio on Comics and Humor.”

The Ojai Valley Museum and Historical Society dedicates itself to bridging the past and the future through stewardship of our community’s heritage. Founded in 1966 by dedicated volunteers, the Ojai Valley Museum and Historical Society today is directed and managed by a volunteer Board of Trustees, a small part-time staff and volunteer members of the Ojai community. This very strong group has managed to encourage and support many outstanding exhibits including art, photography, local history, student art and in December a very special exhibit being created in collaboration with the Ojai Green Coalition.

The Museum is housed in a 1919 Mead & Requa early Mission Revival structure, the former St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church – the only building in Ojai on the National Register of Historic Places. For additional information check out the Ojai Valley Museum website.

Sergio appears this weekend as a guest at the Motor City Comic Convention in Novi, MI. Stan Sakai (who letters Groo the Wanderer and more importantly does his own brilliant comic, Usagi Yojimbo) is also among the guests. If you see one or both of them there, say hello.

Sergio has two convention appearances on his schedule. March 2-4, he’s a Guest of Honor at the WonderCon in San Francisco. Come and see him on one panel with his longtime collaborator, Mark Evanier, and on another with the longtime editor of Mad Magazine, Al Feldstein. Or you can just hang around him in the exhibit hall and marvel at how fast the man draws. If that’s not near you, Sergio will be a Guest at the Motor City Comic Convention in Novi, MI, just outside of Detroit, May 18-20. He’ll be delighted to see you at either or both.